Delhi Violence: BJP Leader Mohsin Ali’s Car Burnt, Family Struggling to Identify Charred Corpse

New Delhi: Mustaqim Ali and Abdul Majid Nizami were among scores of people waiting outside the mortuary of Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital for the body of their loved ones who lost their lives in sectarian violence that ravaged Northeast Delhi last week.

Mohsin Ali (23), a resident of Hapur in Uttar Pradesh, lived in Noida Sector-5. He ran a small business of supplying generators. On February 25 afternoon, he was going to Sonia Vihar Green Garden for repairing generators. He had no about the communal tension in the area. He did not reach the destination. He went missing. When his family members dialled him several times, his cell phone was switched off.

The family, according to Ali’s uncle, Nizami, reached the Sonia Vihar area where his burnt car was found on roadside somewhere near Karawal Nagar. But Mohsin was nowhere to be found. They searched him in all hospitals and mortuaries in the area. But to no avail.

On February 26 night, the deceased’s family got a call from Karawal Nagar police station and was asked to come to GTB Hospital’s mortuary to identify an unclaimed body. The deceased’s father identified a body as his son’s but it was a case of mistaken identity because of similar body features. 

The police told them they had found a burnt body near the vehicle but it was beyond recognition. Only a DNA test can ascertain his identity. “Days after running from pillar to post, the necessary paper work got completed today and the DNA test will be done in next few days,” said Nizami, adding “What sort of society are we living in where people are being killed because of their religion under the watch of the police? The boy belonged to a very poor family and worked hard day and night to establish his business”.

Mohsin’s social media profile suggests that he was associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He had shared photos with senior leaders of the saffron party on Facebook and Twitter.

“Yes, Mohsin was associated with the BJP’s minority cell in Hapur district. He was a committed party worker and had a good reputation. Bu,t sadly, no one from the party has so far come to us either in UP or Delhi. This is how the party treats its Muslims members. It’s really unfortunate,” said Nizami.

Notably, during the violence, rioters also targeted the houses of another Muslim leader of BJP and his relatives. The house of Akhtar Raza, district vice-president of Delhi BJP Minority Morcha, and his three relatives were burnt on February 25.

Raza said: “The crowd started gathering from on February 25 evening at around 4-5 pm. Raising religious frenzied slogans, it started attacking Muslim houses and shops at around 7 p.m. The mob burnt mine and three houses of my relatives.”

He said he dialled the police and informed them that the crowd was gathering everywhere. “We were assured that nothing would happen,” said Raza, adding that “the rioters were mostly outsiders, but some were also from the colony. All 19 houses owned by Muslims in my street were vandalised, looted and torched”.

The BJP leader said: “We have somehow saved our lives. There are 12–13 people in the family. When we were fleeing to save our lives, there was stone pelting on our car. I also spoke to several police officers known to me many times, but they said they were unable to restrain the rioters as they did not have sufficient number of policemen.”

Asked if the party had contacted him to extend help, he replied in the negative. But, he said: “Those in the party I spoke to assured me that justice will be done and culprits will be brought to book. But there is no offer of any relief from the party.”

He, however, said his association with BJP might continue in the future as well. “I urge the party and its leadership to ensure justice,” he said.

It is significant that 46 people have died and more than 200 people have been injured in the violence in Northeast Delhi. The Delhi Police has so far registered 254 FIRs and arrested or detained 903 people in connection with the violence.